


I Won't Leave You

by Verchan



Category: Tales of Berseria, Tales of Series
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Angst, F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Yuri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-27
Updated: 2018-12-27
Packaged: 2019-09-28 07:07:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17178221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Verchan/pseuds/Verchan
Summary: Everyone Velvet ever loved has left her in some way. But Eleanor won't leave her.





	I Won't Leave You

**Author's Note:**

> Naturally, spoiler warning.
> 
> Set in a very slight AU where Velvet is able to live on after the end without sealing herself or worrying about physically wearing away.

After it was all said and done, what was left for Velvet Crowe?

That was the first thing she asked herself when she walked away from that tower, having finished what she set out to do. Artorius was dead, Innominat was gone, and Laphicet adopted the name “Maotelus” to pursue his own life. It was funny; Velvet, along with the others, had spent all this time teaching Laphicet to forge his own path in life and what to live for, but now that she had come to the natural end of the path she laid out for herself, what was she to do now? Building another path to go down wasn’t as simple as one would think, but all the same, she tried.

Lucky her, she didn’t have to do it alone. Laphicet forged his own path, Eizen became a literal ghost to them all as the malakhim became invisible, and Rokurou & Magilou went off to do as they liked, but Eleanor stayed. With the target of Velvet’s anger gone, she was afraid that all she’d have left in place was sadness and emptiness, but it was Eleanor of all people who had offered her happiness. A part of her own happiness that they could share together. 

As she jokingly remarked, Eleanor _was_ Velvet’s, after all. Everything she had, everything she was, belonged to Velvet, so she ought to take advantage of that, right? That was what the new Shepherd said, at least. So, Velvet did just that. Hand in hand with Eleanor, she tried to return to the past, hoping to restore the normal life she once led as best as she could, and pick up the pieces that she could.

She cut her hair, first things first. She had always been told that her hair was beautiful, and that she needed to take care of it. From her brother, from Phi, and even from Eleanor as the two of them moved in together. Velvet finally decided to take that advice into consideration, and now her hair, once so unkempt and wild like an animal, was cleaned up and sorted into a ponytail, just like how she looked once upon a time. The young woman also did away with the tattered clothes that were a symbol of the life she led that was driven into shambles, opting for more appropriate and fitting clothing for a girl her age “should” be wearing. 

For all intents and purposes, she was just a normal village girl again, at least as far as everyone else was concerned.

Still, no matter how much she tried, there were just some things that she couldn’t ever restore. Her arm would have to forever remain bandaged as it was, for instance, and to that end, perhaps what hit her the hardest was her inability to taste her own cooking.

Velvet had long believed she was used to it, as it came with the territory of being a daemon, but it wasn’t until she tried returning to normal, settled life that she realized how sad it was, how cooking was the one link she had that tied her back to her old life, no matter how far she veered away from it on her journey. And yet, now that she was back trying to restore that old life, it stung more than she realized to be unable to take that part back.

Of course, she tried her best to still enjoy the act of cooking at all, even if mostly for Eleanor. After all, as she said, being the new Shepherd was hard work, so she could only work if she had some high-quality meals. Eleanor had always insisted that Velvet’s cooking was amazing, and to be complimented on her cooking by the girl she was, for all intents, in love with did manage to bring a smile on the raven-haired girl’s face.

Still, Eleanor could tell the smile was fragile, like glass, bound to crack at any moment, and that was how her smiles in general looked. Beautiful, yet fragile. Sometimes Eleanor could see that she was forcing herself to smile, whether for herself or her lover, as though it was her only way to push through since she couldn’t quite fight anymore, but even so, she’d work to protect that beautiful smile at all costs. That was what she’d dedicate herself to.

To that end, it wasn’t the cooking woes that Eleanor had to spend most of her time consoling Velvet over. Really, it was child’s play in comparison to the nightmares. Velvet’s nightmares.

No matter how many weeks or months passed as Velvet and Eleanor lived together, the nightmares didn’t stop. Every so often, she’d toss and turn in bed, mumbling incoherently, just barely loud enough to wake Eleanor up, and every time, Velvet would wake up calling out for someone’s name, shaken to her core, troubled deeply. Sometimes, it was her sister, Celica, whom she’d call out to. Sometimes, it was her brother. Sometimes, it was Niko. Sometimes, it was Phi. Sometimes, it was even Artorius. It didn’t take long for Eleanor to catch on as far as what the common theme was between them all was, even as Velvet didn’t want to face it.

Eleanor had hoped that the nightmares would be able to fade as Velvet pushed to move on and start a new chapter with her, but she had her doubts. After all, by herself, was she enough to fill in the holes in Velvet’s heart? That was what the Shepherd feared the most.

…

Today had been a day like any other. Eleanor was glad that the new routine seemed to be working well for both herself and Velvet. Over time, she’d been having the nightmares less and less, until eventually she was able to go a whole week without one… and counting. Nine days so far, to be exact. Velvet’s smiles gradually became more and more natural, and it was evident to Eleanor that she was definitely recovering.

Both of them understood that some of Velvet’s scars could never truly heal, physical or deeper, but Velvet was determined to keep living, taking the messages that those she cherished had imparted upon her, that she was still worth loving despite everything, that it was still worthwhile for her to live.

And as they went to bed again that night, Eleanor would hope she would keep on healing.

But it was never so simple, so easy, as that.

“Eleanor… Eleanor… No…”

Those were the words that woke Eleanor up, and a chill ran up her spine as she realized what it meant. Velvet was mumbling in her sleep.

The Shepherd, curled up in bed, gently turned around to face Velvet, confirming her suspicions as such. Even when asleep, Velvet’s delicate features were something that Eleanor found herself captivated by. Still groggy from just waking up, Eleanor initially didn’t quite know what to do about Velvet here, having put the thoughts of how to handle the nightmares in the back of her mind since they had stopped for a good week for once.

In such a moment of hesitation on Eleanor’s part, Velvet, still writhing in her sleep as though descending into a silent panic, suddenly reached forward and took a tight hold of Eleanor’s wrist like a scared, lost child. Frustratingly enough on Eleanor’s part, this only caused her to freeze up more, her mind scrambling to figure out what to do to little avail. Velvet had never gone this far before, and it seemed that she was diving deeper as she squeezed tightly, causing the younger woman to wince slightly.

And then, she kept sleep talking.

“Wait… Don’t… No…”

Velvet continued to mumble in her sleep, all the while Eleanor could only look on, hesitant to wake her up, not that she even knew why. Perhaps it was because she was so used to Velvet waking up by herself before she sunk too deeply into her own nightmares, Eleanor was just waiting for her to wake up, but she didn’t. She only kept sinking.

“Please, please…”

Tears appeared, trailing down her eyes. Eleanor found it strange to think about how vulnerable she was here, the woman who once utterly defeated her in combat, and how all she wanted to do was cradle her in her arms and tell her it would all be alright.

“Please, please don’t…”

It was there that Eleanor broke free of her stupor and placed her free arm upon Velvet’s shoulder, gently rocking her awake. “Velvet… Wake up! Velvet!” She said in a hushed tone, not wanting to awaken her too rudely, but it wasn’t quite enough.

“Please don’t leave me.”

“Velvet! I’m right here!” Eleanor called out, louder than she even meant to. With that, Velvet’s eyes shot open, as wide as she was surprised, the tears still freely flowing from her eyes as she stared blankly, before her gaze directed itself toward Eleanor, struggling to process her as the source of the reassuring voice that awakened her.

“E-Eleanor?” Velvet could only utter, looking up at her.

“It’s okay… I’m right here. I’m right here,” Eleanor said to her lover, a gentle, assuring smile appearing on her features. She never thought she’d be giving Velvet Crowe such a loving gaze, at least when she first met her, but it was something she deserved.

Velvet let out a sniffle, uncharacteristic of her if one compared how she was during her little adventure. Like a child, she leaned in and buried her face in Eleanor’s chest, letting her tears stain the Shepherd’s nightgown, as not even being awakened could stop her tears.

“Eleanor… Eleanor… It happened again. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…” She cried softly, letting Eleanor gently wrap her arms around her and pull her into a gentle embrace.

“There’s nothing to be sorry about, Velvet. We… We both knew that it’d take time. There’s nothing wrong with that,” Eleanor said softly, using a soothing voice to calm Velvet down.

“I… I’m scared, Eleanor. I know it now,” Velvet whimpered through her tears. “Celica, Laphi, Arthur, everyone… Everyone I’ve ever loved always leaves me in the end…! I thought I could keep moving on, but… What if you leave me too?! I—” Velvet began babbling, pulling away during such to look Eleanor at the eyes, but Eleanor cut in before she could finish with one simple, yet effective, declaration.

“I won’t!”

It cut through Velvet’s words like a hot knife through butter, causing her to stop in her tracks, allowing Eleanor to keep going, a resolute and firm look in her eyes.

“I promise… I won’t ever leave you, no matter what,” Eleanor declared there, clasping Velvet’s hand in her own two palms as though preparing to make a formal vow.

“I said it a long time ago, back when we first moved in together, didn’t I?” Eleanor continued, taking her chance while Velvet still seemed shell-shocked, “Your happiness is my happiness, and I’ll be with you for as long as you’ll have me around. I… I love you, Velvet, and with all my heart, I want you to be happy more than anything else.” 

“E-Eleanor…?”

For a moment, Eleanor didn’t say anything, only leaning in and letting her lips meet Velvet’s, exchanging a gentle, yet passionate, kiss. The taste was a bit salty as it seemed some of Velvet’s tears had flown down to her mouth, but Eleanor would just keep that to herself…

Pulling away just as quickly, her unwavering gaze still focused on Velvet, Eleanor squeezed her hand slightly, going on one last time. “It’s a promise. Okay, Velvet?”

“Eleanor… I…” Velvet stammered mildly, before resolving to at least wipe the tears from her eyes as they stopped, a gentle, fragile smile appearing on her lips. Still, fragile as it may have been, Eleanor knew that it was genuine. “Yeah. It’s a promise. And… I love you too,” Velvet continued. And with that, the two pulled each other in a tight embrace.

“Good night, Velvet.”

“Good night, Eleanor.”

Eleanor knew that her little speech by itself wouldn’t solve Velvet’s fears, but maybe at least now, it could be a start to soothe her woes. And together, just maybe, they’d be able to come closer to carving a new, better life.

With all that in mind, with the woman she loved wrapped in her arms, Eleanor maintained a smile and closed her eyes, eager now to face come what may with Velvet by her side.


End file.
